We’ve come a long way when it comes to interactive toys. If you’re of a certain age, you may remember the good ol’ days of the storytelling Teddy Ruxpin toy… or at least the joys of arming him with a music cassette and watching the robot teddy bear belt out Blues Traveler songs. (No? Only me? All right then.) But technological advancements have improved things over the years for the storytelling toy game, as evidenced by Sphero’s interactive Spider-Man toy.

Per a recent post on Gizmodo, the new app-enabled interactive Spidey stands just about nine-inches tall and is not so much an action figure as it is a crime-fighting companion. Through a downloadable app (iOS or Android), Spidey is capable of telling jokes, asking trivia questions, guarding a room, and can team up with kids to “battle” classic Spider-Man villains. Plus, he’s got some expressive animated LCD eyes that really bring him to life!

From a technical standpoint, what’s really cool about the toy is that it shouldn’t worry parents. In the past, concerns arose about other interactive wi-fi enabled toys and what data they were collecting while kids played with them (as well as the security of that data.) However, even though it connects to wi-fi, Sphero‘s Spider-Man will only “listen” if prompted by pressing the spider emblem on the chest or during the back and forth conversations you have during playtime. Additionally, Gizmodo reported that all of the voice recognition is handled by a chip inside the toy.

As you might expect with most modern interactive toys, the voice interactive Spider-Man from Sphero will set you back a solid $149.99. It also requires the use of the app, so whether or not kids have phones/tablets may factor into the purchase decision.

What do you think of this new Spidey companion? Let’s discuss in the comments below!

Images: Sphero